Bravo to DSL and Kitzhaber for saying no to Ambre

The director of the Department of State Lands, Mary Abrams, announced today that the Ambre Energy permit to build a coal export terminal near Boardman, Oregon was denied.

Bravo! Bravo! Bravo! Mary Abrams and her staff at DSL.

Her official statement reads in part: "As many people know, this permit application has taken hundreds of staff hours to review. From reading more than 20,000 public comments to carefully analyzing technical documents and plans, this application has been scrutinized for months. We believe our decision is the right one, considering our regulatory parameters laid out in Oregon law, and the wealth of information we have received from the applicant and the public."

In reviewing this application and supporting materials, DSL considered the above factors and determined that while the proposed project has independent utility, it is not consistent with the protection, conservation and best use of the state’s water resources, and that the applicant did not provide sufficient analysis of alternatives that would avoid construction of a new dock and impacts on tribal fisheries.

And more Bravos to Gov. John Kitzhaber, whose unqualified opposition to coal exports through Oregon deserves enormous credit and your vote next November.

Here is Kitzhaber's statement: "DSL has found that this application is not consistent with the protection, conservation and best use of Oregon’s water resources. I support this decision, which reflects both the historical and the present-day importance of healthy waterways and fisheries to Oregonians, including Native American tribes. Columbia River Tribes have fundamental rights to these fisheries, and projects that may interfere with these rights or affect important public resources are held to appropriately high standards."